Jt — 8 et hot me nt de ey 


ecrereseser> 


Return this book on or before the 
Latest Date stamped below. A 
charge is made on all overdue 


books. U. of I. Library 


fa Ee Ee eee 
MAY 28 3 UEC 20 196s 
JHN 29 iges 


. 


at awe 
phos 
q 
3S 


aoe 
is 
ee 
i 


Pecans 3 
Saray Sat 
bes pes agate 


MATERIALS FOR THE STUDY 
| OF BUSINESS 


ee 


HOW TO STUDY 


oh cs . 
) YG 


THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO PRESS 
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 


THE BAKER AND TAYLOR COMPANY 
NEW YORK 


THE CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS 
LONDON 


THE MARUZEN - KABUSHIKI -KAISHA 


TOKYO, OSAKA, KYOTO, FUKUOKA, SENDAI 


THE MISSION BOOK COMPANY 


SHANGHAI © 


mow LO STUDY 


SOME SUGGESTIONS FOR 
STUDENTS 


Ey 
ARTHUR W. KORNHAUSER 


THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO PRESS 
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 


CoPyYRIGHT 1924 By 
Tue UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO 


All Rights Reserved 


Published August 1924 
Second Impression October 1924 
Third Impression October 1924 


Composed and Printed By 
The University of Chicago Press 
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A. 


e f\ 
Calg 
\ 


| 


oP A 0, 


PREFACE 


This booklet was prepared to meet the needs of fresh- 
men students in the School of Commerce and Adminis- 
tration of the University of Chicago. The material is 
sufficiently general, however, to be widely applicable to 
other groups of college and high-school students. 

The attempt to help students improve their study- 
methods is not something new. Many books and articles 
are in print on the subject. But a survey of available 
material reveals nothing in the form of brief and direct 
suggestions specially adapted to college students. The 
present booklet attempts to fill this gap. 

The contents of the following pages are the result of 
several years’ experimentation with material for aiding 
freshmen in their methods of study. During 1923-24 
the material was used substantially in its present form 
and was found helpful by large numbers of students. 

Sets of printed rules cannot, of course, take the place 
of more personal and continuous instruction in study 
methods by teachers and advisers. Diagnosis of individ- 
ual difficulties and careful directing of work over long 
periods is to be recommended wherever possible. Class- 
room guidance in studying may likewise be made highly 
valuable. The present booklet is in no sense a substitute 
for these more fundamental ways of teaching students 
how to study. It aims to serve merely as a supplement. 

One word of advice is added for students who come 
to this booklet for help. The advice is: Use the sugges- 
tions! Merely skimming the pages which follow will 


Vi 


Se MY ay 


(° 4 te é 


vi , PREFACE 


do no good. Stop at every new point and inquire carefully 
whether the suggestion is applicable in your own studying. 
Figure out just how you will apply the rule, and then 
apply it. All the rules are not equally important and all 
of them do not need attention from any one person. Find 
out which ones you need most and then hammer away 
persistently at those. Return to the booklet from time 
to time to check your methods and remind yourself of 
the many possibilities of improvement. Effective study 
methods can be made habitual only through a steady and 


ne vigorous campaign. 


The sttdent is strongly advised to go beyond the 
present rules and suggestions. To this end, a list of 
references for further reading is given at the end of the 


booklet, 
A. W. K. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 


I. 
II. 


DE 
IT. 


THE MEANING OF STUDY. 


THE FUNDAMENTAL REQUIREMENT FOR EFFECTIVE 
STUDY. 


. CONDITIONS FAVORABLE FOR CONCENTRATION . 


SYSTEM AND REGULARITY IN STuDY; STuDy HaBITS 


. DEVELOPMENT OF EFFECTIVE METHODS IN READING 


. TRAINING ONE’S SELF TO READ THOROUGHLY 
. TRAINING ONE’S SELF TO READ RAPIDLY . 


. CLassroom Stupy MeEtTHops; LISTENING AND 


NOTE-TAKING 


. AIps IN MEMORIZING 


CRAMMING AND EXAMINATIONS 
PUTTING ONE’S KNOWLEDGE TO USE 


SUMMARY OF RULES FOR EFFECTIVE STUDY 


REFERENCES FOR° FURTHER READING . .. .. 


vii 


PAGE 


GHAPDTER «| 
THE MEANING OF STUDY 


There are,two aims in study: one is to acquire certain 
bodies of knowledge; the other is to acquire certain 
abilities to do things. We study history to gain a knowl- 
edge of ancient Greece or of pre-war Germany; we study 
arithmetic or French to gain an ability to solve problems or . 
read French books. Clearly there is no sharp line between 
these two kinds of study, Knowledge is bound to play 
some part in guiding future thought and action; it is part of 
our ability to do. Likewise, our study of how to do things 
always involves the assimilation of some necessary knowl- 
edge. In acquiring new facts we always use our ability 
to think, and in learning how to act and think in a new 
field we must always acquire bodies of facts. Theré* 
remains, however, a difference in emphasis between 
studying to acquire knowledge and studying to acquire 
the ability to use knowledge and to do things. 

Major emphasis undoubtedly belongs on the side of 
developing our abilities. College education should in- 
crease our powers and capacities—our abilities to work 
and play, to vote and manage men, to read and to think, | 
to organize a business, or plead a case, or cure disease. 
This does not minimize the place of knowledge. ‘True, 
knowledge is made subordinate to the ability to use 
knowledge, but it is an indispensable subordinate. Intelli- 
gent thought and action always have sound knowledge 
as their basis. 


2 HOW TO STUDY 


One of the most valuable abilities to be developed is 

the ability to study—the ability to carry on the intellectual 
labor necessary to solve a problem, think through a ques- 
tion, or master a method of doing something. To learn to 
study effectively is far more important than to acquire 
particular bodies of information. If a college educa- 
tion develops a true power to study, it has succeeded 
though it do nothing else. If the student does not learn 
how to study, his college course has left its biggest job | 
undone. : 
Study includes not only what we gain from books 
and the classroom, but it involves also our acquisitions 
through direct observation and through actual perform- 
ance. To know how to study necessarily means to know 
how to think, to observe, to concentrate, to organize 
and analyze, to be mentally efficient. Viewed broadly, 
study includes all investigation and research. It is the 
application of intelligence to the task of understanding 
®and controlling the world about us. In learning to study 
we are learning to think and to live. 

Study in college is to a great extent study from hook! 
and lectures. ‘This is true simply because in this way 
stores of knowledge and points of view can be acquired 
which it would be impossible or too laborious to collect 
at first hand. Due to this central position of books and 
classroom work in college study, the following pages can 
be profitably limited to these forms of learning. 

Investigations have repeatedly demonstrated the 
possibility of students improving the effectiveness of their 
study. It is a matter of developing “good form” in 
reading, listening, observing, thinking. Proper methods 
are as essential here as in football, typewriting, or goli. 


HOW TO STUDY 3 


The pages which follow suggest some ways of developing 
“good form”’ in studying from books and in the classroom. 

The material is written for students who really desire 
to improve their methods. For the student who does 
not feel the need of learning to study, little can be done. 
If he has not the desire to study (and study means in 
college chiefly book and lecture study), he may well ask 
himself seriously whether it is wise for him to spend 
valuable years of his life in college. But the student who 
feels an honest desire to do college work and who believes 
that he really belongs in college, may find in the booklet 
some useful hints for improvement. 


CHAPTER II 


THE FUNDAMENTAL REQUIREMENT 
FOR EFFECTIVE stuUDe 


All specific advice concerning how to read, how to take 
notes, how to tackle problems, how to form good study 
habits, is secondary. There is one fundamental and 
indispensable requirement for effective study more basic 
than any rules or technique. Without it real study is 
impossible though everything else be favorable; with it 
results can be achieved even in ignorance of all the fine 
points of how to study. This key requirement is a. 
driving motive, an intense desire to learn and to achieve, 
an interest in things intellectual, a “will to do” in your 
college work. If you would learn to study, first develop 
a feeling that you want to master your studies and that 
you wil] master them. . All else is subordinate to that. 

How can this spirit be acquired? First, by building 
up definite ambitions and ideals toward which your 
studies lead; by recognizing frankly the consequences of 
poor work and the rewards of good work. Picture clearly 
to yourself the satisfaction that will come with success, 
and the disappointment that failure will bring. Many a 
student has been transformed from indifference and a 
merely “getting by” policy to an attitude of earnest and 
energetic effort by some emergency that aroused him 
to think seriously of himself and his future. Ask yourself, 
now and then, what you are in school for and toward 
what goal you are moving. A little thought given to’ 


4 


HOW TO STUDY 5 


yourself and the things you are working for is an excellent 
incentive to serious study. 

The drive that makes true study possible comes, in 
the second place, from interest inherent in the subject 
studied. Hand in hand with the development of the 
major purposes and responsiveness to external incentives 
just mentioned, interests must grow up about particular 
problems and topics—desires to study these things for 
‘their own sake. Here are four rules for developing 
interest in a subject: 


1. Acquire information about the subject; you will be 
interested in the things about which you know many 
facts. You become interested in professional baseball 
or in radio as you learn more and more details in each 
field. ‘The same is true of your school subjects. 

2. Tie the new information to your old bodies of knowledge; 
discover relations of new facts to old matters of interest. 
Historic events take on new interest when they are seen 
in relation to present issues. Physics and chemistry 
become interesting when you see their application in 
everyday life. 

3. Make the new information personal. Relate it to 
matters of real concern to you. This material on “how 
to study,” for example, has interest for you only as 
you think how it may aid you. 

4. Use the new knowledge; think and talk and write about 
it; make it play a part in your action; take the relevant 
material from one class into other classes. Discuss 
difficult and questionable points with your friends and 
classmates. Think out the implications and conse- 
quences of new ideas obtained in your studies. 


Part of your study in college will be done with eager 
interest. Itisnolonger work. There is real pleasure and 


6 HOW TO STUDY 


fascination in it. The studying goes forward concentra- 
tedly, overcoming distractions and requiring no effort or 
will power. It is like reading a novel or seeing a movie. 
The greater the proportion of your study that is of this 
sort the better. Any study will in time take on this 
intrinsic interest if only you “stay with it” and try to 
‘make it an active part of your thinking. 

But some studies are bound to be uninteresting at the 
beginning and parts of these studies will continue to be 
uninteresting. What is most interesting for one student 
may be least interesting for another. Nevertheless, there 
are certain matters all students must master, whether the 
topics appear interesting or not. Here it is that one 
must take himself in hand, appreciate the necessities and 
rewards involved, and then make effective his will to 
succeed in the subject. 

Several important hints can be given for gaining the 
. decisiveness that is essential in carrying good resolutions 
into actual practice. Most students have excellent inten- 
tions and high purposes in their study. But somehow 
the doing lags far behind the desiring. 

The following rules will help: 


1. Feel intensely the urge to do the task before yc '. 
Make clear to yourself the relation of the present tac< 
to your larger goals and ambitions. Think how success 
or failure in this particular case will affect your future, 
your attitude toward yourself, and the feelings of those 
interested in you. There are hundreds of motives fcr 
study. Bring them strongly into play. 

2. Make your task definite. Decide just what is to be done 
and just when it is to be done. Break the whole job 
up if it is discouragingly large. See exactly what is 


HOW TO STUDY 7 


involved in the first part and do that. Concentrate on 
the definite piece of work before you. 


. Begin work! -Get started at all costs. Turn your 
attention away from the imagined difficulties and the 
other things that you would rather be doing. Keep 
clearly before you this one job. Forget everything else. 
Once you get well started, interest will develop in the 
subject-matter itself and you will no longer need to hold 
yourself to the work by sheer force. If you have difficulty 
getting down to work, a fourth rule will help. 


. Get set for study. Sit down in a favorable place for 
studying; open your books; take your pencil and 
paper. Ina word, go through the motions. 


. Concentrate. Check every tendency to daydream. Mind- 
wandering is the greatest enemy to study. One hour of 
concentrated study is worth ten with frequent lapses. 
Work intensely while you work. Guard vigilantly 
against mind-wandering, and pull yourself back sharply 
on every occasion. Working under favorable conditions 
and developing an interest in your studies are the surest 
ways of securing concentrated work. Mind-wandering 
is very frequently due to inadequate understanding ~ 
of words or to a deficient background in the present 
subject. Where this is the trouble, it always pays to 
go back and provide the necessary foundation at whatever 
pains. 


CHAPTER III 


CONDITIONS FAVORABLE FOR 
CONCENTRATION 


Effective study demands concentration. The ability 
to concentrate is largely governed by the individual’s 
surroundings and by his own physical condition. Being 
absorbed in study is being oblivious to everything else. 
Learning to concentrate is learning to overcome distrac- 
tions. The distractions to be withstood are of three 
kinds: distractions in the surroundings (noise, glare of 
lights, etc.), distractions arising in one’s body (feeling of 
fatigue, headache, etc.), and distractions in the form 
of irrelevant ideas. ‘The problem of study is in no small 
measure the problem of dealing successfully with these 
distractions. 

Many distractions are best dealt with by elimination. 
The student who wishes to do concentrated work can best 
begin by doing away with all unnecessary distracting 
influences. As regards external distractions this means 
choosing a study place as free as possible from all sorts of 
noises, conversations, moving objects and people, glaring 
lights, ‘bright colors, varied or novel objects, and all 
disturbing features of the surroundings. On the side of 
bodily distractions, it means the avoidance of undue 
fatigue, the maintaining of sound health and bodily 
vigor, freedom from digestive disorders, precautions to 


with respect to light, heat, and ventilation. Care ; 
; ‘ 


HOW TO STUDY 9 


be taken, too, to have one’s chair and work arranged so 
as to avoid any unnecessary strain. 

Many detailed instructions fall under these broad 
generalizations. A very few of the more important 
rules follow: 


1. Study in a quiet room whenever possible. It should be 
relatively free from visual distractions as well as noises. 


2. See that your place of study is properly lighted, heated, 
and ventilated. The light should, above everything else, 
not shine directly into your eyes or be visible “out of 
the corner of your eye.” Also avoid a glaring reflection 
from the pages of your book. The temperature is or- 
dinarily to be kept between 65° and 68°. Ventilation 
should be good but, of course, without draft. 

3. Arrange your chair and work to avoid strain and 
fatigue. Shift your position from time to time. Be 
comfortable—but avoid being too comfortable. It is 
almost impossible to study strenuously when one is 
settled back in a large easy-chair or is reclining freely 
on a couch. 

4. Keep yourself in good physical condition. Do not 
hesitate to consult your medical adviser for suggestions. 
Be careful of your eating. Eat at regular times. Eat 
slowly. Eat with friends whenever you can. Make 
your mealtime a recreation period. Avoid heavy meals 
at noon and never begin study immediately after eating. 
Get sufficient sleep at all costs.. Even if it means carrying 
fewer courses, it will pay in the long run to avoid cutting 
in on your sleep. If you have difficulty going to sleep, 
do something to take your mind off your work and to let 
you relax before retiring. A little light reading, a warm 
bath, a walk, a conversation, a letter to family or friends, 
often help. If you are much bothered by sleeplessness, 

- consult your medical adviser. Manage to get some 


ike) HOW TO STUDY 


regular exercise and recreation. Kemember that a little 
exercise regularly is infinitely more valuable than occa- 
sional ‘‘exercise sprees.”’ 


Not all distractions can: be done away with. Hence 
the student must learn to concentrate in spite of them. 
He must depend upon his interest in his studies and his 
ability to hold himself to his work despite the difficulties. 
Mind-wandering or the distraction by irrelevant ideas 
must be attacked in the way suggested in chapter 1i—by 
vigilant and persistent determination to check every 
irrelevant train of thought. Developing interest in the 
subject and application of the rules given above will aid. 


CHAPTER [V 


SYSTEM AND REGULARITY IN 
STUDY; STUDY HABITS 


In school work, as in business or military campaigns, 
it is essential to have a plan of action. The student who 
“budgets” his day and then adheres to his program 
eliminates half the effort and worry from his work. A 
plan that is steadily followed soon becomes the easy and 
natural routine of the day. Studying comes to belong in 
one’s life as fully as dressing in the morning or being on 
hand for dinner. A fixed program of study is one of the 
greatest aids in making one’s work smooth-running and 
effective. The value of systematic plans is well ex- 
pressed in a recent book by B. C. Ewer: 


If we have several duties confronting us simultaneously, 
_ it is only too likely that we shall fail to do any of them. They 
seem to get in each other’s way. The pressure of each prevents 
us from giving ourselves whole-heartedly to any, or we turn ina 
futile fashion from one to another, dropping each as soon as it 
is begun. A previous declaration, however, such as that we 
will begin to answer those letters at half-past seven o’clock 
or that we will take up a certain matter of business next 
Thursday at nine, settles it. The proper set of the brain is 
established, other tendencies are frustrated in advance, and when 
the time comes we almost automatically do the thing appointed. 
Those whose occupations leave them largely to their own 
initiative learn that their salvation depends upon regularly 
‘making some sort of a day-plan. 


II 


12 _ HOW TO STUDY 


The details of the daily time schedule must be deter- 
mined by each individual for himself. Decide how many 
hours you will give to your studies. Avoid being too 
heroic in your plans. <A careful estimate is needed of your 
actual capacity for work. Try neither to overestimate 
nor to underestimate the time to be given to study. Next, 
select the time of day which you prefer for intellectual work. 
Be sure it is a time that you can use uninterruptedly every 
day. You may wish to use two or three different study 
periods during the day. To do so is excellent—provided 
you form the habit of studying at these times regularly, 

The amount of time to be given to each subject must 
also be settled, and likewise the order in which the studies 
will be tackled. You cannot, of course, determine in 
advance exactly how long each assignment will require or 
at what time precisely you can take up your next study. 
Study habits cannot be perfectly rigid. But it is well 
each day to plan the approximate time for your assign- 
ments and the order in which you will do them. You can, 
in this way, entirely avoid the serious difficulties of “not 
knowing what to do first”’ and of worrying about the other 
things you “‘ought to be doing.” | 

Few students know where their time goes. An accu- 
rate knowledge of how your days are spent at present 
is a first long step toward living up to a more effective 
daily schedule. A convenient form is shown here for 
keeping an hourly record of your day’s activities. Make 
a number of copies of this card and fill one in each night 
before retiring. You will soon gain some interesting facts 
about your use of time. ‘These daily reports will also 
serve as a convincing record of the improvement you are 
making through laying out your program of work each day. 


HOW TO STUDY 13 


NAME 
Rising hour______Retiring hour_____Date. 


Account of time between rising hour and 8:00 


ACTIVITY COMMENT 


Account of time between 6:00 and retiring hour 


SUMMARY OF Day 
Number of hours of’sleep (preceding rising hour). . . ———_— 
Number of hours recreation and rest (after rising hour) —____ 
Number of hours Duysieal exercise-or' work). ff you ips See 
Number of hours taken for meals. GN 
Nammeoreot bars mental work...) ow. ool is et 


T4 HOW TO STUDY 


A definite place to study is no less important than a 
definite time. Have a particular table and a particular 
chair which are always used for study and intellectual 
work. ‘This place will come to mean study. To sit down 
in that particular spot and at your regular time will 
automatically lead you to assume a readiness for work. 

The cultivation of system and regularity in work is 
held by many to be the secret of success. Sir William 
Osler, one of the greatest men in the medical profession, 
addresses the following question to a body of students: 
“How can you take the greatest possible advantage of 
your capacities with the least possible strain?” He 
answers his question in this way: 


By cultivating system. I say cultivating advisedly, since 
some of you will find the acquisition of systematic habits very 
hard. ‘There are minds congenitally systematic; others have - 
a lifelong fight against an inherited tendency to diffuseness and 


carelessness in work. .... Take away with you, from a man 
who has had to fight a hard battle, the profound conviction of 
the value of system in your work..... I appeal to the 


freshmen especially, because you today make a beginning, and 
your future career depends very much upon the habits you 
will form during this session. To follow the routine of the 
classes is easy enough, but to take routine into every part of 
your daily life is a hard task. ... . Let each hour of the day 
have its allotted duty, and cultivate that power of concentration 
which grows with its exercise, so that the attention neither flags 
nor wavers, but settles with a bull-dog tenacity on the subject 
before you. Constant repetition makes a good habit fit easily 
in your mind, and by the end of the session you may have 
gained that most precious of all knowledge—the power to work. 


CHAPTER V 


DEVELOPMENT OF EFFECTIVE 
METHODS IN READING 


Most studying in college consists of reading. The 
development of the ability to study is to a great extent a 
matter of learning to read effectively. This, so far as 
study is concerned, means learning to read quickly and 
learning to read thoroughly. Usually an assignment is 
best mastered by combining a preliminary rapid survey 
with a more careful and thoughtful second reading. You 
should train yourself in both abilities. The next two 
chapters will deal with these two topics—rapid reading and 
thorough reading. 

Some general rules for developing reading methods 
that underlie effective study are given in the present 
chapter. 

1. Think about the topic of study before beginning to read. 
Prepare your mind. Ask yourself how this reading fits 
into the work of the course. How is it related to preced- 
ing topics? What problem is it trying to answer? 
Ask also, how much you already know about this subject. 
Recall, from your previous reading and study and from 
your experience, knowledge that bears upon the reading. 
Formulate questions to put to the author. Think how 
you would develop the subject. 

2. Become acquainted with the reading at the outset. 
Obtain a preliminary rapid impression of a book or a 
reading just as you do of a lecturer. Note the title, 
the author, the author’s position and his other writings, 


T5 


16 


HOW TO STUDY 


the year the book was written, the preface, the table of 
contents, and the manner of presentation. Form an idea 
of the value of the book or article. Decide what you 
expect it to give you. : Note the author’s plan and keep 
this in mind as you read. 


. Read rapidly through your assignment, first, to get a 


bird’s-eye view of the whole. Neglect details. Try 
to get the broad sweep of the reading as a whole. With 
a little practice you can learn to skim very quickly 
through even long assignments and get the main ideas. 
In many books you will find a number of examples 
given to illustrate each principle. Once you are certain 
you have grasped the principle, the examples need not 
detain you. Reading through your lessons twice may 
seem unnecessary and a waste of time. It isn’t. In the 
long run you will find that it not only leads to better mastery 
of your subjects but it actually saves time as well. (Chapter 
vii deals with the development of ability to read rapidly.) 


. Read your assignment a second time more slowly, 


thoroughly, and thoughtfully. You will find that the 
details are far more meaningful and more readily grasped 
by reason of the preceding rapid survey. Keep the main 
idea in mind and see all the subordinate points in relation 
to this central thought. Parts of a reading which by 


- themselves are often obscure and difficult become clear 


when they are related to the underlying idea. Knowing 
what comes later will save you many minutes of perplex- 
ity and mind-wandering. In your thorough reading, 
much time must be spent in thinking. Go beyond the 
book. Forge new links and create new examples. Treat 
the author critically; make him justify his statements 
and points of view. Tie the present discussion to your 
previous thinking in the subject. Make it part of 
your thinking. Use the material in your conversations 


HOW TO STUDY 17 


and discussions. (Chapter vi deals in greater detail 
with methods to be used in thorough reading.) 


. Make note of the important points in your reading; 
mark your book or take notes. In your thorough 
reading, when you come to an important point, underline 
it, or make a mark or note in the margin of your book, 
or jot down the point in your notebook. At the end 
of each paragraph or set of paragraphs, stop and think 
over what you have read, and summarize it in a marginal 
note or by marking the author’s words. Note-taking 
is valuable both at the time you think out and record 
the points and at later times when you wish to review 
or refer to the topic. 

Review your notes before proceeding to your new 
assignment each day. This requires only a few minutes 
and is extraordinarily valuable. Where your notes are 
not perfectly clear, where they do not awaken a definite 
idea of the point, turn to the original.reading and refresh 
your thinking. This use of notes insures your building 
each lesson on a sound foundation. 


. Be certain your knowledge is clear and “thought 
through.” Be self-critical toward your acquisitions of 
knowledge. Many students are too easily satisfied 
with themselves. While you cannot hope to learn a 
great deal about any subject in a short time, see that the 
little you do learn is clear and definite. Avoid, above 
everything else, an acceptance of vague and muddy 
ideas. The habit of getting ‘“smatterings’” of subjects 
spells intellectual ruin. Far rather get a few fundamental 
ideas from a course or a book and have them clearly 
than get scores of “half-baked” notions. 


CHAPTER Re Va 


TRAINING ONE’S SELF TO READ 
THOROUGHLY 


It is almost always desirable to skim through a book or 
assignment hurriedly before tackling it in a thoroughgoing 
fashion. If the book is not of much value the preliminary 
reading suffices. If it is worth a more careful reading, the 
rapid survey will be most helpful in giving the essential 
ideas and point of view into which the detailed subject- 
matter can be fitted. 

It is assumed, moreover, that even before you skim 
a book or article you will perform the indispensable 
preparations. You will, that is, think about the topic 
and formulate questions and problems which the reading 
is tosolve. You will glance over your notes from previous 
reading and class discussion that bear upon, or lead up to, 
this subject. You will also become familiar with the 
book or article by finding out something of the author and - 
the nature of this piece of writing. 

Your careful and intensive reading should always : 
preceded by these several steps. First, think over the 
topic you are about to study and form an idea of what 
you expect to find out. Second, introduce yourself to 
the author and book. Third, skim hurriedly through 
your assignment to gain a bird’s-eye view of the whole 
and a notion of the author’s plan. After these prepara- 
tions are completed you are ready to read the matter 
thoroughly. 

18 


HOW TO STUDY 19 


1. Keep the purpose of the reading in mind as you read. 
See how the points fit in with the main purpose and 
support it. When you find your mind wandering, 
stop and recall your problem, relating it to the passage 
you are reading. 


2. Be sure you have the main thought of each paragraph. 
Stop at the end of each paragraph or division of the 
subject and recall in your own words the central thought 
of that section. Ask yourself questions about it. See 
what relation it bears to the main problem and to the 
points that precede it. If the paragraph is not clear, 
go back and take each sentence alone; if a sentence is 
not clear, take each phrase and word. If you are certain 
you understand the main thought of the paragraph, 
however, do not waste your time on single phrases and 
sentences. Stopping to recall what you have just read 
is the best way to be sure that you are getting the 
thought. Recall during reading may appear wasteful. 
Actually, however, it has been demonstrated to add 
greatly to efficiency in study. Even when you are 
pressed for time, stop frequently in your studying to 
think over what you have read. You will master far 
more than by straight-away reading. 


3. Use judgment in the time you give to the different 
points in your reading. Vary the rate of your reading. 
Read the important and difficult points slowly, making 
sure you understand them. Read the familiar points 
rapidly. Skip over the points that have no significance 
for your present purpose. The secret of study is to 
seize upon the important and the difficult parts and 
concentrate upon them. 


4. Think critically in your reading. Draw your own 
conclusions. Go beyond the book. Spend a large 
part of your study time thinking over the material you 


20 


HOW TO STUDY 


read rather than merely memorizing the points. Too 
many students accept blindly as truth whatever they 
see on a printed page. A safer attitude is one that 
carefully weighs and considers the facts, opinions, and 
theories that are read. Nothing is true simply because 
it is in a book. Nor is it either true or false merely 
because it fits in, or fails to fit in, with your previous 
notions. Above everything else, cultivate an open- 
minded attitude toward the subject of your reading. 
Be ready to believe, but not too readily. Examine the 
evidence and the reasoning back of an author’s conclu- 
sions. Be willing to suspend judgment where you are 
not convinced. 

In thinking over what you are reading, ask yourself 
such questions as these: Is the writer citing facts 
accurately? Does he distinguish between facts and 
opinions? Do his conclusions follow necessarily from 
his evidence? Do his conclusions agree with your own 
independent views? By considering these questions 
you will come to conclusions of your own, whether they 
happen to agree with the author’s or not. Be sure, 
however, to view your own conclusions as tentative 
and subject to change. 

Your thinking must do more than arrive at (age 
conclusions. Find illustrations and applications of the 
points read. Think what further conclusions follow. 
What are the implications of the author’s view? What 
light does this reading throw on other problems you 
have been struggling with? Let your new reading 
continually stimulate thought on a host of related topics. 


. Record the main thought of each division of your reading. 


Mark the important points in the reading as you come 
to them. The simplest way of marking the passages 
is to draw a line beside them. If the passage is especially 
important, draw a double line beside it. Use a 


HOW TO STUDY 21 


interrogation mark beside points which you are not 
sure about, or where you wish to make further inquiries. 
Other special marks may be adopted at will, but it is 
important to have a uniform system in all your reading. 
When you stop to think over paragraphs which you have 
just read, summarize the central idea in a brief marginal 
note. Record,also, questions that occur to you and points 
where you take issue with the writer. Taking critical 
notes and marking passages will force you to think and 
to pick out the essential points. It will also aid greatly 
when you come to review or refer to the points in your 
reading. 

. Make a mental (or written) outline of the material as 
you read; then review the entire reading with this 
outline in mind. The thoughts of the different sections 
must be interrelated. Organize the material into main 
points and subpoints. Obtain a clear picture of the 
entire topic. A jumble of disconnected facts and opinions 
is useless. See the subject in the large. Group the 
details-under the important thoughts. Think over the 
reading with your outline as a guide. Where you are 
not clear, turn to the book and re-read. Change the 
outline if necessary. In the end, be sure that you see 
the subject as an organized whole. 


CHAPTER VII 
TRAINING ONE’S SELF TO READ RAPIDLY 


The student who can read rapidly saves an immense 
amount of time in his studying. This ability is particularly 
valuable in certain kinds of reading: (1) Rapid reading 
is a necessity when you have to go through a mass of 
reading to find material on some special point. The 
library work involved in preparing a report or term paper 
usually demands this sort of reading. You wish to find 
all that you can about a particular man or movement in a 
score of different history books; or you are to hunt through 
a. vast literature to find the origin and development of 
some invention or some theory. (2) Rapid reading is a 
great asset, too, when you are trying to gain simply the 
general thought or fundamental argument of a piece of 
writing. Often, for example, you wish to compare the 
points of view of two authors, or you seek a sketchy 
familiarity with some field which you have not time to 
explore carefully. (3) Most important of all, rapid 
reading is valuable in your ordinary daily studying as a — 
means of obtaining a preliminary bird’s-eye view of your 
topic. The usefulness of a hurried first reading—to be 
followed by thorough studying—was emphasized in ~ 
chapters v and vi. | 

Most students can with a little effort greatly increase 
the speed of their reading. Experiments show that it is 
not unusual for a person to improve from 50 to 100 per 
cent in his speed of reading without any loss in the compre- 


22 


HOW TO STUDY 23 


hension of the ideas read. Actual evidence does not 
support the common belief that slow readers make up for 
their slowness by more thorough comprehension. In 
general it is true, rather, that individuals who learn to 
read rapidly lose almost nothing in their comprehension. 
They obtain almost as many ideas per page as the slower 
reader, and they obtain, of course, very many more ideas 
per minute. 

Some definite rules for improving your speed of reading 

follow: 

1. Keep forcing yourself to read rapidly, Put forth a 
strong and persistent effort. Urge yourself continually 
to speed up. Simple as this sounds, it is the most 
important of all rules for increasing your reading speed. 
Continuous effort will very soon bring results, even 
though you ignore all other rules. Begin today forcing 
yourself to read rapidly. At first your comprehension 
of ideas will be interfered with. But with persistent 
daily practice you can soon learn to grasp ideas with 
remarkable quickness. Do not mind the mistakes and 
omissions that occur while you are learning. Read over 
your lesson rapidly two or three times if necessary to 
get the main ideas, then read carefully for details. 

2. Read phrases and sentences, not words. Many people 
pronounce words to themselves in silent reading almost 
as distinctly as though they were reading aloud. This 
habit can best be overcome by the vigorous application 
of ruler. The separate pronunciation of words becomes 
impossible when you speed up the rate of reading. 
Learn to leap from phrase to phrase and from sentence 
to sentence. Trust that later sentences will clear up 
points that remain obscure. ead for ideas, not words. 

3. Learn to skip wisely. ‘Hit the high spots.’”? Do not 
be afraid to skip phrases, sentences, and even whole 


git Say APT OY wee eI Sas OS Bee SE a Gt ere en Smeg re ere i 8 a SS tare es 


24 


HOW TO STUDY 


paragraphs, provided you have caught the drift of | 
author’s thought. (Remember that you are going 
re-read the matter if it is something to be mastere 
Give special attention to the beginning and end of e: 
sentence and of each paragraph. Often you need O 
the first and last sentence of a paragraph to get the wh 
thought. Authors have different habits in this matt 
and you will do well to discover in each assignm 
whether summary sentences are used and whether tl 
ordinarily occur at the beginning or end of paragrap 
Where a book has printed marginal notes or paragre 
headings or a detailed table of contents, you can 
these to great advantage in skimming the book. 


. Test yourself every few days to see what progress | 


are making in speeding up. Take some book of moder 
difficulty and see how many pages you can read 
fifteen minutes, without losing any of the essential thou, 
After a few days’ practice in speeding up your readi 
give yourself another fifteen-minute test in the same bo 
Continue to do this and keep careful records of 

results. To make sure that you are getting the essen 
thought, write down your idea of what you have re 
and then compare these notes with the original mater 
Keeping note of your actual progress in this way ° 
help you greatly in your determination to impro 
You will find a marked increase in your ability to r 
rapidly and still get the meaning of what you read. 


CHAPTER VIII 


-LASSROOM STUDY METHODS: LISTENING 
AND NOTE-TAKING 


The classroom is a place to learn, not a place to 
emonstrate what you have already learned. Aside 
om your reading, the most important part of your 
ollege studying is in the classroom. You need to form 
ood classroom habits as well as good reading habits. 

Some rules that will help in your classwork follow: 


1. Ascertain the teaching method in each of your classes 
and guide your activities accordingly. Different classes 
are conducted in different ways and the student must 
adopt methods appropriate to his several classes. The 
contrast is especially striking between the lecture 
method and the discussion method. But beyond this 
broad division there are many other variations—differ- _ 
ence in the kind of lectures and discussions, and differ- 
ences in the personality and the requirements of the 
instructors. Lectures may be presentations of material’ 
that is not in your books; they may supplement your 
texts; or they may merely repeat, in different form, 
what you have read. Again, they may aim primarily 
to present problems, applications, and criticisms of 
your reading; or they may be principally inspirational 
and stimulating. Obviously your method of listening 
and note-taking will differ in these different cases. 

Similar variety exists in classes not given over to 
lectures. The instructor may quiz you or he may 
expect you to contribute to the discussion without being 
questioned. He may discuss only points on which you 


25 


26 


HOW TO STUDY 


have already prepared, or he may discuss matters that 
are not in your regular assignments. You must be 
alive to all these possibilities. You must adapt yourself 
to the instructor and his methods if you are to profit most 
from the classroom work. 

In spite of the diversity of classroom work, some rules 
can be laid down that are of general applicability. In the 
main, they run parallel to the rules for effective reading. 


. Think about the subject-matter for the day, before class. 


Prepare your mind. Recall the main points of your 
reading. Review your notes from the day before. 
Think of the questions and problems that arose during 
your preparation of the assigned material. The minutes 
preceding the class hour can be used to excellent advan- 
tage—not for cramming the details of your lesson but 
for thinking over the topic as a whole and for formulating 
the difficulties and issues of the subject. 


. During the class period, think all around the points 


raised in the lecture or discussion. Go beyond that 
which is presented. Keep recalling related points from 
your reading and experience. ‘Tie together ideas that 
had been drifting about. Think critically of the con- 
clusions and views that are expressed. Ask questions. 
Make each idea prove its soundness. 

Above everything, be active in your listening. 
Passive absorption is impossible. ‘The capable listener 
thinks far ahead of the speaker. ‘Train yourself to 
anticipate what is coming. Debate mentally with the 
speaker. See what difficulties there are in his reasoning. 
Pick out the essential ideas and link them to your pre- 
vious thinking in the subject. If the discussion is dull 
and uninteresting, occupy your thinking with a deeper 
and broader inquiry into the topic. Good students do 
some of their most penetrating and creative thinking 
during the “‘dry” parts of their classes. 


HOW TO STUDY 27 


4. Concentrate on the topic of discussion. Check every 
tendency toward mind-wandering. Pull yourself back 
sharply when your mind rambles off to irrelevant 
matters. The best way to avoid daydreaming and 
wandering attention is to follow the advice of rule 3. 
Keep your mind active with thoughts about the subject 
being presented. Note-taking will also aid in combating 
tendencies toward mind-wandering. But the greatest 
thing is your earnest effort. Resolve to stop immediately 
every train of idle thoughts. 

5. Take notes on the important points. The kind of notes 
you take will be determined in large measure by the 
nature of the classroom work. It is important for you 
to consider carefully what your note-taking policy will 
be, and then to carry it out to the letter. A few hints 
that may be helpful follow: 

a) Where the class period is devoted to questions 
and discussions, take relatively few notes and fit these 
into your reading notes. Usually you will need to jot 
down only the conclusions of a discussion or a few words 
to indicate the answer to a problem that bothered you. 
These notes can often be placed to best advantage 
directly in your book, beside the question or paragraph 
to which they refer. If the instructor ordinarily sum- 
marizes long discussions or adds new material to that 
of the book, you may find it valuable to take notes on 
cards or in a notebook. 

Avoid long notes. Keep your attention free for 
thought on the subjects discussed. Thinking through 
a problem yourself is infinitely better than getting 
someone else’s answer neatly written in your notes. 

b) Where the lecture method is used, you will need 
to take more notes than in the case of class discussions. 
How detailed your notes are to be will depend upon the 
kind of lectures and upon your own best method of 


28 


HOW TO STUDY 


study. In general, make your notes as brief as is practi- 
cable. Keep your mind free to think over the points 
of the lecture. Understanding the lecture clearly is 
your primary aim; notes are secondary. 

If a lecture is clearly organized, cast your notes 
directly into the form of the lecture. The instructor 
may give you an outline of his points, or he may present 
his subject in such clear-cut divisions that you can easily 
form an outline. Your notes should be a skeleton of the 
lecture. ‘Arrange main heads and subheads in accordance 
with some definite plan and system of symbols. It is 
wise to go over your notes soon after they are taken, 
thinking of the points and their interrelation and making 
necessary revisions. 

Many lectures do not fall into a clear outline form. 
Often the best you can do is to jot down important or 
striking points in the order in which they are mentioned, 
even though they do not fit into a general scheme. 
With notes of this sort you will find it especially important 
to re-write and organize the material very soon after 
the lecture. While the points are still fresh in your . 
thinking the notes will have meaning and can be written 
up in full; a day or two later they would be of little use. 


. Use your notes after class each day. Read over your 


notes and think about the points on the same day they 
are taken. See wherein the notes agree and disagree 
with your reading and your previous impressions. 
Follow up each point that is not entirely clear, through 
further reading, thinking, discussion, and consultation 
with the instructor. Remember that your notes are 
useful only to the extent that you can put meaning into 


them. The way to make notes meaningful is to work 


over them carefully and thoroughly while the material 
is still fresh and easily recalled. 


iAP PER CX. 
AIDS IN MEMORIZING 


Memorizing a lesson is often contrasted with mastering 
it. The use of thought and the use of memory are viewed 
as alternatives. This is misleading. Understanding a 
point always involves the remembering of related ideas and 
facts. In order to think, you must have some materials 
of thought—materials furnished by memory. Remember- 
ing the significant points of a lesson is a necessary part 
of the mastering of it. . 

The common feeling against the use of memory in 
study arises because memory is thought of as mechanical 
or rote memory—a process of “learning by heart.” But 
this is only part, and the less important part, of our 
remembering. Memory of connected and meaningful 
ideas, of material that has been understood and thought 
about, is clearly a most important part of all effective 
study. A lesson is never mastered without a great deal 
of remembering—logical remembering. 

Thinking is given first place in discussions of how to 
study and memory is little mentioned simply because the 
remembering takes care of itself. Memory, in short, is a 
by-product of thoughtful study. The rules that previous 
chapters have given for improving methods of reading and 
learning are at the same time rules for better remembering. 
Almost the only way that improvements can be made 
in memory, as a matter of fact, is through the use of 
better methods of learning. 


29 


30 HOW TO STUDY 


Here are some brief rules for improving your ability 
to remember: 


1. Get the meaning of the idea to be remembered. Make 
sure that you clearly understand the material. Think 
about it and tie it to as many other ideas as you can. 
Form a variety of associations among the ideas. Look 
at the new material from all sides. Think of ilustra- 
tions and applications of the facts and principles; 
inquire into causes and effects; see if there are excep- 
tions or difficulties. The richer the associations, the 

\ better the memory. 

2. Go over the material to be remembered again and again. 
Repetition of ideas strengthens the associations among 
them. The stronger the associations, the better the 
memory. 

3. Keep actively attentive; avoid mechanical repetition. 
Think about the material you are trying to learn each 
time you go over it. Taking notes and talking to your- 
self or to a fellow-student about it will also help. Merely 
reading over the words will not enable you to remember. 
Bring yourself back sharply when you begin drifting 
in this passive fashion. 

4. Learn with the intention of recalling. You can remember 
better if you study with.a definite expectation of recalling 
or using what you are studying. Intend to remember, 
however, not simply for recitation the next day but for 
permanent use. 


5. Stop frequently during your studying and make yourself 
recall the things you are learning. A large part of your 
study time should be spent in recalling the ideas you 
have read. When you cannot recall, turn back and 
refresh your memory. Then practice recall of the whole 
topic again. Repeat this process until you have really 
mastered the material. 


HOW TO STUDY oF 


6. Have confidence in your ability to remember. Forget- 
ting is often due to your being ‘‘fussed”’ and nervous. 
After you have once mastered a topic, trust yourself 
to remember it. The confidence itself will aid the 
remembering. 


7. When facts have no logical connection, form some 
arbitrary associations to help remember them. The 
need for this is rare. Almost any facts worth remember- 
ing at all can be organized into some logical and sensible 
form. These meaningful or logical associations are 
much the better sort. Especially in remembering names 
and numbers, however, logical connections are often 
absent. Many memory aids and devices have been 
proposed for such matters (jingles for the number of 
days in the months, and names of the presidents, etc.). 
The advertised “memory training systems” have elabo- 
rate codes which are usually far more trouble than they 
are worth. Your own self-made associations are more 
economical. 


CHAPTER X 
CRAMMING AND EXAMINATIONS 


Cramming is good or bad depending on what is meant 
byit. Ifit refers to feverish last-minute efforts to memorize 
masses of material which should have been learned during 
the course, it is decidedly harmful. It serves only to give 
some confused smatterings of the subject. Even the 
fragments of knowledge that are acquired in this eleventh- 
hour dash will be quickly forgotten. They will be of 
little lasting use. Cramming is no substitute for faithful 
daily work during the course. 

If cramming is interpreted as meaning a strenuous 
review at the close of a course, it has much to recommend 
it. You can do a great deal to refresh your memory 
and to note the interrelations of topics by running over 
the main ideas that have been dealt with. If you have 
notes from your books and class discussions, use these 
in review. If your notes are not adequate, skim through 
your textbook to get a bird’s-eye view of the course. 
Then think over each main topic, trying to recall as much 
as you can and turning to the book for further light when 
necessary. ; 

Two rules are especially important: 


1. Review the main points; get a skeleton view of the 
subject; avoid memorizing details. Get the main ideas 
and think about these long enough to see how the 
details are to be organized under them. The specific 
examples and facts will be readily recalled if you are 


32 


HOW TO STUDY Le 


clear as to the way they fit into general conclusions and 
points of view. 


2. Give yourself plenty of time for reviewing: avoid high- 
pressure reviewing at the last minute. Do your review- 
ing early; Begin reviewing the whole course at least 
a week or two before examinations. Leave only a few 
finishing touches for the day before the examinations. 
Do not cram at all on the day of the examination. 


Several hints may be added of points to bear in mind 
in taking examinations: 


1. Be cool and self-confident. Trust your memory. 
Reassure yourself by recalling the care with which you 
have reviewed and the general understanding of the 
course which you know you have. Recall, too, that 
instructors are human and do not give examinations so 
difficult that students having a fair grasp of the course © 
need fear. 


2. Read over the whole set of examination questions and 
think about each one long enough to understand it. 
The questions often have some relation to one another 
and your ideas on one question may help with another 
question. You also gain an idea of the time to give to 
each question. The ability to plan your answers and 
to provide time for all the questions is no less important 

- than the ability to answer the separate questions. 


3. Read each question very carefully before beginning to 
answer it. Make certain that you have the real point 
of the question. Think around it for a time before 
deciding finally how you will approach it. 

4. Make mental (or written) outlines of your answers. 


Outlining will help you immensely in getting a complete 
and rounded answer to each question. A well-organized 


34 


HOW TO STUDY 


answer also does wonders in convincing the instructor 
that you have mastered the topic. 


5. Reserve time to go over your answers and make neces- 
sary changes.. A re-reading of your examination will 
often enable you to catch places where you did not 
make your meaning clear and places where you can add 
to the thought or modify it to advantage. 


CHAPTER XI 
PUTTING ONE’S KNOWLEDGE TO USE 


Only one general rule is set forth in this chapter, but 
it is the most important of all rules for effective study. 
Briefly, it is this: 

Study actively. Learn by doing. Use your knowledge by 
thinking, talking, and writing about the things you are learning. 


If you are asked why you study, you probably give 
the obvious answer that your studies will be useful; 
you expect to profit by the knowledge and methods of 
work that you acquire. If you have in mind a broad 
enough definition of what is useful, your reply is entirely 
sound. You will apply the things you learn, not merely 
_in making a success of your vocation, but also in all your 
thinking, talking, writing, and your conduct of the most 
varied sorts. You are using your knowledge when you 
think through new problems or draw new conclusions. 
You are using your knowledge when you give advice or 
information to your friends or discuss issues with them. 
You are using your knowledge in writing, in planning, in 
taking action in social and political affairs—in everything 
that you do. The one great aim of all your study is 
increased efficiency of thought and action through putting 
your knowledge and skill to use. 

The using of knowledge is not only the aim of your 
studying; it is, in addition, the very essence of the study 
process ttself. Knowledge is not something that you can 


35 


36 HOW TO STUDY 


absorb and hold for later use. Knowledge is acquired 
only through thinking and doing. ‘The material in books 
becomes part of your mental equipment just so far as you 
succeed in tying it to the rest of your knowledge—so far, 
that is, as you use your ideas in relation to one another. 
Bernard Shaw somewhere remarks: “If you teach a 
man anything he will never learn it.” More bluntly 
the common saying has it: “We learn through doing.” 
Learning, in other words, is an active process. ‘To acquire 
new ideas means always to react to them, to put them to 
use, to reason about them, to talk and write about them, 
to act upon them. 


& few specific bits of advice may now be given that 
der the general rule: 


1. Think of illustrations and concrete examples to which 
your new knowledge applies. Ideas that you read or 
hear will remain empty words unless you put into them 
some familiar concrete contents. In your studying, 
force yourself continually to find specific illustrations and 
applications. 

2. Compare new ideas with the knowledge you already 
have. Criticize and evaluate opposed views. Use the 
new material in re-examining your earlier conclusions. 
You can make ideas part of your own thinking by using 
them to mold and polish other ideas. Your knowledge 
in this way becomes tested and sound. This putting 
ideas to use best prepares them for further use in thought 
and action. 

3. Use your knowledge to explain facts and to foresee 
consequences. Inquire what other facts are causally 
related to the present one. Interrelate and organize 
your knowledge. Think of the causes and probable 
consequences of the facts you are studying. The habit 


HOW TO STUDY 37 


of using new ideas in looking ahead and in thinking out 
the logical implications of facts is a most important way 
of putting your knowledge to use. 


. Put your ideas on paper: make outlines; write essays; 
draw diagrams. Writing is one important aid in keeping 
active toward your studies. It also affords a valuable 
way to use your ideas. Many men do their best thinking 
in the process of putting things on paper. 


. Take every opportunity to talk over the things you are 
learning—in class-discussions, with your classmates and 
instructors, with family and friends. ‘Talking often helps 
remarkably in clarifying ideas. ‘Teaching a subject is 
said to be the best way of learning it. Find someone 
to whom you can explain the matters you are learning 
or someone with whom you can talk over the main 
points of your study. 


. Apply your knowledge in action. Put the principles 
you learn into practice. An excellent example is the 
material contained in this booklet. Knowledge of how to 
study is worthless unless you use the ideas in improving 
your actual study methods. Many of the things you 
learn in your school studies are similarly applicable 
to your actual conduct—from rules of English composi- 
tion to methods of scientific research, and from knowledge 
of accounting practices to psychological hints on the con- 
trol of emotions. In all your studying, adopt the policy 
of applying your knowledge as much as possible and as 
soon as possible. | 


CHAPTER XII 


SUMMARY OF RULES FOR EFFECTIVE 
STUDY 


The more important rules and suggestions contained 
in the preceding chapters are briefly restated here. Stop 
and think carefully of each point. When you come to a 
rule that you have not been applying, take special note 
of it and refer to the chapter where it was discussed. 
Remember, above everything, that the rules are useful 
only as you persistently apply them day after day. 
Forming good habits of study takes time; you must 
hammer away steadily to produce results. 

The rules follow: : 

1. Feel intensely the desire to master your studies and 

resolve that you will master them. Build up definite 
ambitions; appreciate your duties and responsibilities ; 
recognize the consequences of poor work and the rewards 
of good work. 

2. Carry your resolutions into practice. The following 

methods will help: 

a) Think frankly of the larger consequences of success 
or failure in the task before you. 

b) Make your task definite and keep this one job clearly 
before you. 

c) Begin work! Get set for study. Go through the 
motions. | 

d) Concentrate on the subject. Check every tendency 
to daydream. Guard against mind-wandering and 
pull yourself back sharply on every occasion. 


38 


HOW TO STUDY 39 


. Develop interest in your subjects of study. To do this, 

a) Acquire information about the subject. 

b) Tie the new information to old matters of interest. 

c) Make the new material personal. Relate it to 
matters of concern to you. 

d) Use the new knowledge. 

. Avoid all distractions that interfere with your studying 

—noise, glare of lights, uncomfortable feelings, 

strains, too great relaxation, and so on. 

. Arrange a fixed daily program of study. Plan your 

work. Cultivate systematic habits as regards the time 

and the place for your studies. 

. Develop effective methods of reading. 

a) Think about the topic of study before beginning 
to read. Prepare your mind. Review your notes 
from the day before. 

b) Obtain a preliminary impression of a book or reading 
by referring to the preface, table of contents, etc. 

c) Read rapidly through your assignment first, to get 
a bird’s-eye view of the whole. 

To learn to read rapidly: 

(1) Keep forcing yourself to speed up by continual 
effort. 

(2) Read phrases and sentences, not words. 

(3) Skip wisely; read only parts of sentences and 
paragraphs. 

d) Read your assignment a second time more slowly, 
thoroughly, and thoughtfully. Some specific rules 
are: 

(1) Keep the purpose and plan of the reading in 
mind as you read. 

(2) Stop at the end of each paragraph and think 
about the point. Look at the ideas from all 
sides. Be sure you have a clear understanding 
of the thought. : 


40 


é) 


f) 


a) 


b) 


d) 


é) 


HOW TO STUDY 


(3) Read important and difficult points slowly. 
Read the familiar and unimportant points 
rapidly. 

(4) Think critically while you read. Draw your 
own conclusions. Go beyond the book. * 
Make note of the important points in your reading. 
Mark your book or take notes. Summarize the 
principal thoughts and jot them down. Use your 

notes in review each day. 

Make a mental or written outline of the whole 

reading. ‘Think over this organized outline of the 

topic before leaving the book or reading. 

Be certain your knowledge is clear and “thought 


through.” Avoid vague and muddy thinking. 


Get a few fundamental ideas clearly, whatever else 
you get or fail to get. 


. Develop effective methods of classroom work. 


Ascertain the teaching method in each of your 
classes and guide your classroom activities accord- 
ingly. 

Think about the subject-matter for the day, before 
class. Prepare your mind. Review the work of 
the preceding day. 

During the class period, think all around the points 
raised in the lecture or discussion. Go beyond that 
which is presented, but— 

Concentrate on the general topic of discussion. 
Check every tendency toward mind-wandering or 
daydreaming. 

Take notes on the important points. But remember 


that the first thing is to understand the ideas; 


getting them down on paper is secondary. 

(1) Where the class period is devoted to questions 
and discussions, take relatively few notes and 
fit these into your reading notes. 


~ 


PS 


f) 


HOW TO STUDY 4I 


(2) Where the lecture method is used, get a skeleton 
outline of the lecture or a set of notes covering 
the main points. Re-write and organize your 
notes while the subject-matter is still fresh in 
your thinking. | 

Use your notes after class each day. Think over 

points which are not clear and seek further light 

from books and from your instructor. 


8. Improve your ability to remember by adopting better 


Io. 


a) 
b) 


c) 


d) 
é) 


f) 
g) 


a) 


b) 


methods of learning. Specifically— 

Get the meaning of the idea to be remembered. 

Go over the material to be remembered again and 
again. 

Keep actively attentive; avoid mechanical repeti- 
tions. 

Learn with the intention of recalling. 

Stop frequently during your studying and make 
yourself recall the things you are learning. 

Have confidence in your ability to remember. 

When facts have no logical connection, form some 
arbitrary associations to help remember them. 


. In reviewing for examinations— 


Review the main points; get a skeleton view of the 
subject; avoid memorizing scattered details. 

Do your reviewing early. Avoid high-pressure cram- 
ming at the last minute. 


In taking examinations— 


a) 
b) 


¢) 


Be cool and self-confident. Reassure yourself. Trust 
your memory. 

Read over the whole set of examination questions 
and think about each one long enough to under- 
stand it. 

Read each question very carefully before beginning 
to answer it. 


42 


Il. 


HOW TO STUDY 


d) Make mental or written outlines of your answers. 
e) Go over your answers if you oe time and make 
necessary changes. 


Study actively. Use your knowledge by thinking, 
talking, and writing about the things you are learning. 
Apply your knowledge as ae as possible and as 
soon as possible. 


. oe 


RAE 


REFERENCES FOR FURTHER READING 


Apams, J. Making the Most of One’s Mind. New York: 
George H. Doran Co., 1915. Pp. 290. 

DEARBORN, G. V. N. How to Learn Easily. Boston: Little, 
Brown & Co., 1916. Pp. 227. 

Kitson, H. D. How to Use Your Mind. Philadelphia: 
‘J. B. Lippincott Co., 1921. Pp. 216. 

McMurry, F. M. How to Study and Teaching How to Study. 
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1909. Pp. 324. 

SANDWICK, R. L. How to Study and What to Study. Boston: 
D. C. Heath & Co., 1915. Pp. 170. 

SANFORD, F. How to Study—lIllustrated through Physics. 
New York: Macmillan Co., 1922. Pp. 56. 

Swain, G. F. How to Study. New York: McGraw-Hill 
mook.Co. 1017. Pp. 6s. 


\ Wurrple, G. M. How to Study Effectively. Bloomington: 


| 
j 
4 
¢ 


Public School Publishing Co., 1916. Pp. 44. 


PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. 


43 


Materials for the Study of Business 


RA sR EE en TE 
Industrial Society. By Leon C. Marshall. 1,082 pages, cloth, 
$4.50, postpaid $4.65. . 
Financial Organization of Society. By H.G.Moulton. 790 pages, 

cloth, $4.00, postpaid $4.12. 

Principles of Accounting. By Albert C. Hodge and J.O. McKinsey. 
390 pages, cloth, $3.00, postpaid $3.10. 

Law and Business. By William H.Spencer. 3 vols., cloth, $4.50, 
postpaid $4.62 each. . 
Voll. Introduction. 612 pages. Vol. Il. Law and the 
Market. Law and Finance. 670 pages. Vol. Ill. Law 
and Labor. Law and Risk-Bearing. Law and the Form 
of the Business Unit. 654 pages. 

Business Administration. By Leon C. Marshall. 920 pages, cloth, 
$4.00, postpaid $4.12. ssa rca 
Education for Business. By Lev&&det S. Lyon. 618 pages, cloth, 

: $3.50, postpaid $3.60. y 

Social Studies in Secondary Schools. By a Commission of the 
Association of Collegiate Schools of Business. 114 pages, 
boards, $1.00, postpaid $1.10. q 

Forms, Records, and Reports in Personnel Administration: Edited by 
C. N. Hitchcock. 128 pages, paper, $1.75, postpaid $1.79. 

Recent British Economics. By D. H. MacGregor, R. Lennard, and 
J. A. Hobson. 134 pages, boards, $1.50, postpaid $1.60. 

The Worker in Modern Economic Society. By Paul H. Douglas, 
Curtice N. Hitchcock, and Willard E. Atkins. 962. pages, 
cloth, $4.50, postpaid $4.65. . 44 

Dumping: A Problem in International Trade. By Jacob Viner, 
344 pages, cloth, $3.00, postpaid $3 12. = 

The Economics of Overhead Costs. By J: urice Clark, xiv-+ 
502 pages, cloth, $4.00, postpaid $4.15. 0 . 

The Packing Industry. By thetinstituremel Adiierican Meat 
Packers. 358 pages, cloth, 00, postpaid $3.10. 

Risk and Risk-Bearing. By Charles O. Hardy. 400 pages, cloth, | 
$3.50, postpaid $3.60. 

Readings in Risk and Risk-Bearing. By Charles O. Hardy. 368 
pages, cloth, $3.50, postpaid $3.60. — 

Psychological Tests in Business. By Arthur W. Kornhauser and 
ForrestA.Kingsbury. 194pages, cloth, $1 .90, postpaid $2.00. 

Managerial Accounting. Volume |. By James O. McKinsey. 
655 pages, cloth, $4.00, postpaid $4.15. 

How to Study. By Arthur W. Kornhauser. 43 pages, paper. 
25 cents, postpaid 27 cents. Bs 


IN PREPARATION a 
The Technique of Business Commu- The Place of the Market in our Eco- 


nication. nomic Society, ‘f 
Managerial Accounting. Volume Il The Manager’s Administration of 
2 ; abor. ae 
Commercial Cost-Accounting. The Physical Environment of Busi- 
The Manager’s Administration of ness. med 
Finance. Social Control. ; Pts 


THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO PR 


ESS 
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS P 


z 


‘ae 


ee 
| 
2 | 
. it 
t Sa 
WO ea air 
on gens, EON i 


5 ey x 
Sep ent a 


iam” 


Bere Po. eh ee DF Tv 


OF ILLINOIS 


TM 


TT 
15229 


0694 


